Ariana Grande Responds to Fan Criticism Over Her Wicked Casting

Ariana Grande understands that she wasn’t necessarily a popular choice to play Glinda in Wicked.

The 31-year-old opened up about her history with the hit Broadway musical and her passion for playing the pink-loving “good” witch in the film adaptation opposite Cynthia Erivo in the role of Elphaba.

“Going off of ‘Side to Side,’ I probably would’ve said the same thing," she said. "I probably would’ve said, ‘Why the f--k? Kill me. I’ve waited 20 years for this. Kill me.’ I would’ve said that as a fan from the outside, knowing of only ‘7 Rings.' I’d say, ‘Well, that’s bulls--t.’ So, you know, I get it.”

“I felt a little bit of the initial nervousness,” she said, “or the sort of preconceived notions about what I might be able to deliver or not deliver, or why I would be wrong or whatever.”

The “thank u, next” singer added that though some might perceive her stardom as an advantage, she felt otherwise.

“I think it’s the opposite, it can work against me in certain ways,” she explained. “When you have this caricaturized persona out there and people know you as this one thing. Is this person going to be able to erase that and disappear into this character?”

Wicked hits theaters Nov. 22.